The Game
by GetSetPirouette
Summary: Korra and Bolin take their 'little game' a little too far. One shot! Some Borra if you squint.


It had become somewhat of a game over the weeks following the end of the revolution, once things had finally calmed down enough for the three of us to find time for ourselves again. Whenever Mako was distracted, busy, or just plain not looking, Bolin would turn to me and utter a single word.

"Toothbrush."

"Wallet."

"Frying pan."

That's the way the game would start. Bolin would give me a target; usually a small item that wouldn't be missed immediately. I could only win if I could get away with it, keep its absence unnoticed until Mako eventually needed it. So dinner would roll around and there'd be no pan to cook with, and Mako would storm in, face red and eyes blazing, demanding the return of his stolen goods.

So of course, Bolin and I would burst into side-splitting laughter, just to make him a little angrier. But then we'd give it back, and Mr. Short Fuse would sulk away, grumbling about how we wouldn't sneak past him next time.

Then came the night when we were all sprawled out on couches, relaxing after a long day. We each had our own things to do: Bolin was recruiting new people for the Fire Ferrets, I was doing my Avatar duties, and Mako was going through training to be a police officer. Needless to say, he was knocked out beyond all recognition; limbs sprawled in ways that could _not_ be comfortable by any stretch of the imagination. But still, he slept on, mouth agape.

Bolin was throwing one of Pabu's toy balls against the wall and catching it when it bounced back, but suddenly he stopped, froze for a second, then sat up quickly. His eyes lit up in that way that could only mean trouble, and I knew the game was on. I didn't know quite what I was about to get myself into, however. Not until his smirk broke just long enough to mouth that one fatal word:

"Scarf."

It was perfect. _Finally_, a challenge.

I took a deep breath and stood up from my chair, rolling my feet to muffle my footsteps as I crossed the room to where Mako lay snoring. Maybe I'd get lucky and his deep sleep would last long enough for me to get this right. Bolin's stifled laughter behind me threatened to give me a way, so I shot him a glare, effectively shutting him up.

Slowly but surely, I wrapped my fingers around the worn, red cloth draped around Mako's neck. No movement yet. My brain started working double time, trying to figure out the best way to go about this. Maybe I should have planned this out…

Biting my lip and cursing my lack of foresight, I did the only thing I could think to do.

I yanked hard, running out of the room before I could even see the rest of the scarf unravel. Bolin was hot on my heels, scrambling up from the couch to join me and finally giving into the urge to laugh. It would be our best heist yet, without a doubt, and the thought of Mako's face when he noticed it was gone finally drove me to join in with the giggling.

We tucked ourselves into Mako and Bolin's room, doubled over in laughter that we no longer tried to stifle. When we finally caught our breath, I wrapped the scarf around my neck, smirking with all the confidence in the world. I'd earned it.

It only took a few minutes for Short Fuse to burst through the door. I swear, I could almost see steam blowing out of his ears, but I was going to live this up to the fullest.

"Hi, I'm Mako," I said, deepening my voice to mock his tone. My efforts to spill into laughter once again were far more successful than Bolin's, as he was now pounding against the wall with tears spilling out of his eyes. "Bolin, eat your vegetables! Korra, stop burning everything! There is entirely too much fun going on around here!"

Mako scoffed, stomping across the room and tearing the scarf away before spinning away on his heel and slamming the door behind him. Bolin snatched me into a hug and lifted me off the ground. "_That!" _Bolin choked on his own laughter, "Was priceless! Best one yet!"

…Yeah, there was really no arguing with that.


End file.
